Earwigs are both helpers and pests in the garden, and whether you need to control them depends entirely on what you’re growing. They are voracious predators of aphids and other soft-bodied insects, providing real biological control. But they can also devastate seedlings, chew through flowers, and ruin soft fruit like strawberries and raspberries. The key is figuring out which side of that equation you’re on.
What Earwigs Actually Eat
Earwigs are omnivores that feed at night, which is why you rarely catch them in the act. On the beneficial side, they consume large numbers of aphids, insect eggs, and other small soft-bodied pests. In some garden situations, they exert significant biological control over aphid populations, doing work you might otherwise need sprays or ladybugs for.
The problem starts when earwig populations grow large enough that they run out of insect prey and turn to your plants. They target soft, tender tissue first: seedlings, flower petals, ripening fruit, and corn silks. A small earwig population in an established perennial garden may do nothing but good. A large population in a vegetable garden full of young transplants can wipe out entire rows overnight.
Plants Most at Risk
Seedlings of almost any vegetable or annual flower are vulnerable. Earwigs can strip young plants of all their leaves and even chew through stems, killing them outright. Once plants mature, the damage shifts to cosmetic holes and ragged edges on leaves, which most plants can tolerate.
Certain crops stay vulnerable well past the seedling stage:
- Soft fruit: Strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, and apricots. Earwigs burrow into ripening fruit, often from the bottom where it contacts the ground.
- Sweet corn: Earwigs feed on corn silks and prevent pollination, leading to ears with missing or poorly developed kernels.
- Flowers: Zinnias, marigolds, and dahlias are particularly targeted. Petals end up riddled with holes.
- Leafy greens and herbs: Any tender, low-growing foliage is fair game.
If your garden is mostly established shrubs, trees, and hardy perennials, earwigs are likely doing more good than harm. If you’re growing any of the crops above, you’ll want to manage them.
How to Tell It’s Earwigs, Not Slugs
Earwig damage and slug damage look similar at first glance, and both pests feed at night, so you won’t see either one working. The distinction matters because the control methods are different.
Earwig damage on younger leaves appears as small, scattered holes across the leaf surface. On older leaves, the chewing tends to concentrate along the edges, giving them a ragged, tattered appearance. Slug damage also produces ragged holes, but slugs leave shiny trails of dried slime on and around the plants they visit. No slime trail, no slugs. If you see irregular holes and ragged leaf edges with no mucus residue, earwigs are your most likely culprit.
To confirm, go out with a flashlight about an hour after dark. Earwigs are easy to identify with their distinctive pincers, and you’ll find them clustered on the same plants showing damage.
Reducing Earwig Habitat
Earwigs need cool, dark, moist hiding spots during the day. They tuck themselves under mulch, boards, stones, ground cover, leaf litter, and garden debris. You can’t eliminate every hiding spot in a garden, and you shouldn’t want to (mulch is valuable). But if earwig damage is severe, reducing unnecessary cover near vulnerable plants makes a real difference. Pull mulch back a few inches from seedling stems. Clear boards, pots, and debris from garden beds. Allow the soil surface near susceptible crops to dry out between waterings, since earwigs strongly prefer moisture.
Trapping Earwigs
Trapping is the most effective and targeted way to knock down earwig numbers without harming beneficial insects. Two methods work well, and you can run them simultaneously.
Oil and Soy Sauce Traps
Mix equal parts soy sauce and vegetable oil (olive, canola, or any cooking oil works) in a shallow container. A deli container or old yogurt cup is perfect. Bury the container at ground level near the plants being damaged so earwigs can walk right in. The soy sauce scent attracts them, and the oil coats their bodies so they can’t climb back out. Check and refresh the traps every few days. One gardener using a container with a quarter cup of soy sauce and a half cup of canola oil reported catching large numbers within 24 hours.
Rolled Newspaper Traps
Dampen a section of newspaper and roll it loosely into a tube. Place it on the ground near affected plants in the evening. Earwigs will crawl inside overnight, seeking the dark, moist shelter. In the morning, before they disperse, pick up the entire roll and shake it into a bucket of soapy water, or seal it in a bag and throw it away. This method is free, simple, and surprisingly effective when you use multiple rolls across the garden.
Both trapping methods work best when you set them out consistently for a week or two rather than just once. Earwig populations in a garden can be large, and a single night of trapping only catches a fraction.
Protecting Seedlings Directly
While trapping reduces the overall population, your most vulnerable plants may need direct protection. Plastic cloches, cut-off water bottles, or row cover draped over hoops can physically exclude earwigs from young transplants during the critical first few weeks after planting. Once stems thicken and plants put on several sets of true leaves, most vegetables can tolerate some earwig nibbling without any impact on yield.
For fruit crops that stay vulnerable through harvest, try elevating fruit off the ground. Straw mulch under strawberries (ironically) can help if it’s kept dry, and picking fruit as soon as it ripens reduces the window of opportunity. Earwigs prefer fruit that’s already softening or slightly overripe.
When to Leave Them Alone
If your garden has a healthy earwig population and you’re not seeing meaningful plant damage, the best move is to do nothing. Those earwigs are eating aphids, mites, and insect eggs that would otherwise require intervention. In ornamental gardens, established perennial beds, and orchards with no soft fruit, earwigs are a net positive. They’re part of a functioning garden ecosystem, and eliminating them can lead to aphid outbreaks that create bigger problems than the earwigs ever did.
The practical approach is to trap and exclude earwigs only around the specific crops they damage, and let them work for you everywhere else.